Marijuana bust nets dad, son

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A raid of five homes in York Township, Cleveland and Parma resulted in the arrests of a father and son who allegedly were growing more than 1,000 marijuana plants with the intent to sell, federal drug agents reported.

Eugene Pal, 53, and Andrew Pal, 27, both of Parma, were arrested Tuesday following a 3½-month investigation.

Andrew Pal was arrested when he arrived at one of the houses, which had been gutted, at 4315 Abbeyville Road in York Township. Eugene Pal was arrested at a house on Westminster Drive in Parma.

"This couldn't have happened without the Medina County Drug Task Force's assistance," said U.S. Assistant Attorney Joseph Pinjuh. "All the work, hours and manpower they provided are really what made this happen."

An informant alleged to drug agents Aug. 11 that Andrew Pal was involved in setting up multiple large-scale indoor marijuana operations. The informant asserted the younger Pal might have been involved in trafficking marijuana and ******* since 1993, U.S. District Court records show.

The informant claimed diesel fuel generators were used to power

the growing operations, so as not to arouse suspicion from high electricity use. He also alleged Andrew had traveled to Amsterdam to obtain high-quality marijuana seeds for the operations, records show.

The largest crop was found in the York Township house, which contained 683 plants. During a Nov. 13 surveillance of the house, the hum of a generator could be heard from 50 feet away, and the "overwhelming scent" of marijuana was recognizable from 100 feet, records show.

More than 300 plants and $175,860 in cash were seized from the remaining four houses.

During his arrest, Eugene Pal reportedly told agents he expected "to obtain approximately 10 pounds of marijuana from the plants at Abbeyville and that he expected a profit of approximately $3,000 per pound." He said a growing cycle is completed every two months, records show.

The elder Pal also indicated he buried $30,000 to $40,000 inside a pipe somewhere on the Abbeyville property, records show.

Both men face federal drug possession, manufacturing and distribution charges, two of which are punishable by a minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life, Pinjuh said. They are currently in the custody of U.S. marshals.

Sullivan may be reached at dsullivan@ohio.net or 330-721-4046



By DENISE SULLIVAN
Staff Writer, - Medina County Gazette
http://www.medina-gazette.com/Articles.asp?num=58206706

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Yeah I noticed that too, all the recent news post were somehow sent to the archive and vice versa....